Celebrate Thanksgiving Today and Every Day Sausage & Herb Stuffing

Thanksgiving is a great reminder to each of us to be thankful for everything that we have in life. I do my best to be aware of the blessings in my life on a daily basis but this one day each year is a great time to bring more awareness to each of these blessings. Thanksgiving is a time to get together with family and celebrate the fact that we are surrounded by such a loving group of people. As we sit around the dinner table on Thanksgiving, my family has a tradition where we go around the table before we eat and say one thing that we are thankful for. As cliché as it sounds I think many people often forget to be thankful.

So today, I would like to take a moment to share what I am thankful for: I am thankful for a loving family and group of friends that make up an amazing support system for my life. I am thankful that I have a job and a source of income. I am thankful for health, not just for myself, but for those around me. I am thankful for the fact that I have food on my table every night. I am thankful for the roof over my head. I am thankful for the fact that I am able to blog about my passions. Once again, I realize that all of these things may sound cliché but I think often times we take advantage of what we have. Take a moment today to tell those around you how much you appreciate their presence in your life. I would also encourage you to reach out to those that might not be as fortunate as you this holiday season. On a lighter note, I am also thankful for the fact that I can cook a full Thanksgiving meal at any time of the year! While you might be a little tired of turkey at this point, you may have some leftovers that need to be used up. So why not craft a second round of sides to go with the leftover turkey.

One of the things that I love about stuffing is that you can pretty much throw anything into it and it will taste delicious. I'm more of a fan of traditional herb stuffing with a twist of fruit. The sweet and savory flavors come together to form a robust side dish.

I used green apples because they tend to add just a hint of sweetness to the stuffing but a great crunch. This is also a great side dish to serve with roasted chicken, so if you need a break from Thanksgiving dinners you can save this recipe for a later date. What is one thing that you are thankful for today?

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.

2. Place the bread cubes in a single layer on a sheet pan and bake for 7 minutes. Raise the oven temperature to 350 degrees. Remove the bread cubes to a very large bowl. While the bread is cooking, cook the sausage over medium heat, breaking it into small pieces. Drain the meat and place it to the side on a plate.

3. In the same sauté pan that you cooked the sauces, melt the butter and add the onions, celery, apples, Poultry Herb Blend, salt and pepper. Sauté over medium heat for 10 minutes, until the vegetables are softened. Add to the bread cubes.

4. Add to the bread cubes and vegetables.

5. Add the chicken stock and cranberries to the mixture and mix well. Pour the mixture into a 9 by 12-inch baking dish. Bake for 30 minutes, until browned on top and hot in the middle. Serve warm.